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Tuesday, April 22, 2008

This One’s For You

posted by on April 22 at 15:40 PM

Jamieson.jpg

This week’s books lead is a great story by Charles Mudede about the fact that most, if not all, writers write for one person. The writer that Charles uses to explore this idea? Seattle Post-Intelligencer columnist Robert Jamieson.

I can’t read this passage of Charles’s story without laughing out loud, which is really rare for me:

Jamieson’s reader is a reasonable man. When he reads, “I’d say that’s a wise allocation of limited police resources,” he thinks to himself: “Yes, I have to agree with you, Jamieson. This is a wise allocation of police resources.”

Does Jamieson have an ideal reader? And if so, should we be terrified of him? Some of the answers are here.

RSS icon Comments

1

Which begs the question: Who is Mudede's ideal reader? As near as I can guess, I'd say it's The Man Who Fell to Earth.

Posted by Bwana | April 22, 2008 3:56 PM
2

@1 Himself.

Posted by PA Native | April 22, 2008 4:03 PM
3

I think Charles is writing for me.

Too bad I only read his stuff at the public library.

Posted by Will in Seattle | April 22, 2008 4:03 PM
4

QUIZ TIME:

Robert Jamieson is to Ken Schram as Charles Mudede is to ???

Posted by stinkbug | April 22, 2008 4:37 PM
5

I'm in a bad mood to start with. And reading anything that Charles writes makes my head hurt which really doesn't improve my mood.

But, just in case I wasn't getting some uber cool idea that Charles was trying to convey (and because Paul recommended it and I loooove Paul), I tortured myself by reading this article twice.

Writers write for themselves. Charles is no different. This is an ego piece and frankly would've been a lot better with more examples than just Jamieson. Instead it comes off as a condemnation of the "man in the middle" Jamieson writes for. And also a bit like an inside joke, like ooo see this award winning journalist who is really a hack.

Of course, since I am apparently neither Jamieson's or Charles' target person all of this was wasted on me.

And, really I'm only writing this post for one person, me. So suck it the rest of you.

p.s. @3 Will, honey, I really thought we had the start of a beautiful relationship but you are going to have to buy me a lot of pie to make up for the fact that you are the man Charles writes for.

Posted by PopTart | April 22, 2008 4:50 PM
6

There must be a typo ... actually writing the phrase "great story by Charles Mudede" must be what really made laugh out loud.

Posted by bride of chucky | April 22, 2008 5:10 PM
7

Now, if Charles did an Art History book ...

Posted by Will in Seattle | April 22, 2008 5:18 PM
8

I don't get it.

Posted by Ono | April 22, 2008 8:36 PM

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